Forward head positioning is an increasingly observed malady in our society. As is well known to orthopedists, chiropractors and other medical practitioners the human head in its normal position should sit in a direct fashion on the neck and shoulders. Partly because of certain increasing habits in our society the head can become displaced to a posture where instead of sitting directly on the neck and shoulders, is displaced forward of that normal position to what is called a “forward head posture” (or “FHP”). FHP has indeed become so widespread that it may already constitute a health hazard having the ramifications of a pandemic, since when left untreated FHP can develop degenerative and disabling joint diseases affecting countless numbers of people.
There are numerous reasons why FHP is becoming such a more common problem. For example, vastly increased use of computer screens accustoms the operator to move and maintain the head in the undesirable forward head posture. The problem is also exacerbated in children and young adults by long hours devoted to video games, not to mention conventional television watching. Yet another source believed to be responsible for the malady particularly in children, is the present custom of children carrying extremely heavy backpacks to and from school. The weight of such backpacks is so high as to require head placement in a forward position to balance the load, which results in the increasing observation of forward head posture in both children and young adults.
Basic damage resulting from forward head posture (FHP) arises because the upper cervical portion of the spine can become chronically misaligned. It of course will be evident that the FHP condition need not result from undesirable habits and practices as discussed above, but can also be the result of injury.
While the difficulties arising from FHP are certainly well recognized in the healing arts, efforts to correct same by treatment with orthopedic devices and the like have not been successful. Basically such efforts have taken the form of using cervical collars to in some manner immobilize the neck. The objective of these collars, or for that matter of other prior art treatment, has simply been to utilize traction to displace the head from its improper position. Neither these prior art collars, nor to the best of applicant's knowledge any other presently available devices and/or apparatus, are however effective in reversing the damaging effects of FHP.
As used herein, the term “Z-axis” refers to the horizontal axis extending in an anterior-posterior direction with respect to a set of axis positioned at a hypothetical human, where the corresponding vertical axis is referred to as the Y-axis and the horizontal left to right side axis with respect to such human is referred to as the X-axis. Many of the prior art devices that have been used or proposed, while achieving adjustments along the Z-axis are not otherwise concerned with simultaneously improving cervical lordosis. Most cervical collars are designed to immobilize the neck and/or cause axial translation to decompress the cervical spine while causing the cervical spine straightening. This may produce mixed benefits, as ligament impairment cannot improve around a straightened cervical curve, as this is an abnormal alignment, which will ultimately result in permanent arthritic changes to the cervical joints. Ligament rehabilitation requires improvement of joint alignment over time. Most current extension traction therapy designed to improve cervical lordosis is practiced for 20 minutes or less. One objective of the present invention is to improve cervical lordosis with a full correction collar over many hours. The present invention is thus relatively comfortable and can be used at work or at home or even during sleeping hours to avoid unhealthy postures that impair the health of an injured neck.